Russian gasoline production fell to about 70% of domestic consumption by the end of August after a series of drone attacks forced several major refineries to suspend operations.

Ukraine has stepped up attacks on Russian energy infrastructure in an effort to reduce Moscow’s revenues. Fuel shortages reemerged in several regions in August after a brief improvement in late July, when some local authorities began easing or lifting restrictions on sales.

According to industry sources, gasoline production at the end of August had fallen to roughly the same level as in early July, at the peak of the first wave of a fuel crisis that had been building since May.

Over the past week, drones struck several major Russian refineries and forced them to halt operations. The affected facilities included plants in Perm, Nizhny Novgorod and Yaroslavl, all significant producers of gasoline.

(Reuters, bak)